Forge Scramble
Note: Edited and Swivel Translations supplied! Megatron is sittig at a table with a datapad and now a dataslug, a mug of energon by the datapad and a pleased and devious look on his face. It's obvious he's gotten some good news and it's obvious he's going to make the most of it. You can almost see the gears turning in his head as he ponders what he's just found out. More good news, or some grounding bad news, just might be on its way. For into The Forge steps a small femme. Small, but not so small as to be knocking elbows with minicons. She pauses at the entrance, looking about with a tentative expression, her large purple-tinted optics scanning. She leans closer to someone to ask a question, and after repeating herself a few times, is pointed towards the small alcove that serves as a site for refreshment. Lifting her chin and picking up her stride, the femme approaches Megatron. "Deliv'ry," she announces, skipping a syllable. Milling about the outer edges of the arena and occasionally using the stairs for their designed purposes are a bunch of pretty unremarkable disposables. They're being ignored for the most part; after all, all that they're doing is cleaning up spills left behind, the occasionally bloody puddle, and other bits of bile and general ick. Whoever ordered these waste bots to clean about ordered a few too many; some are seen cleaning hand rails and a couple don't really seem to know WHAT to clean. One of those poor saps is an also pretty ignorable YX-939, who, if anyone existed that cared to look right at him, would see the little bot scrubbing mugs by the refreshment tables. Two other waste bots are doing the same thing with him. A barkeep keeps sliding them more to clean, so it looks like someone assigned them there to do just that. Megatron looks up from his datapad and those intense red optics zero in on the courier. "Well, let me have it," he says in a commanding tone and then hears the clatter of mugs to the side of him. He shifts his optic focusing orbs to the side and see what the slag? Why is this place suddenly being cleaned? That's a first. With a curt nod the courier untucks a datapad from her person and hands it out for Megatron to take. "'Ere y'go!" she says cheerfully, if one could actually call her butchery of language 'speaking'. Her smile intensifies to conceal her own weak-kneed response to being stared at with such an intense stare. Not sure whether staring back would be confrontational or not, she errs on the side of caution and cast a glance around. She satisfies herself with watching the cleaning of mugs. Nothing special, but it is movement, and it's nearby. Maybe someone was overzealous in making sure this place was nice and sparkling. For whatever reason. But, hey, at least things are tidy, right? Look at all those little waste bots, cleaning up messes and being all quiet while doing so. Very quiet. ...A little eerie, really, how silent they could be. But, oh, look! They notice that people are staring! The cleaning of the mugs INTENSIFIES. Faster, it goes! 'Squeak' goes a mug as it's cleaned. YX-939 immediately appears horrified. Megatron sees the waste bots start cleaning faster and then looks back at the courier. "What did you say?" he asks as he takes the datapad out of her hand. He looks back at the wastebots and wonders who ordered them here. Curious indeed and he's not sure he likes this quandary. "I said 'ere ya-" 'SQUEAK' Interrupted, Swivel goes and looks at the source of the sound. She is silent for a moment, espying the horrified expression. That's an expression she has worn herself from time to time when she has drawn unecessary attention to herself when she wasn't supposed to. She then quickly looks back at Megatron and tries again. She speaks slowly and carefully, but it sounds as if doing so is somewhat of a chore. "I... said... 'ere ya go..." If that one horrified waste bot could sink in to the floor, he probably would be right now. As it stands, YX-939 slowly slinks almost underneath the table instead. Almost. Can't really clean mugs from under the table. At least the cleaning has slowed down enough that there's no more squeaking or clinking; that one noise was enough to teach a good lesson to the little group, it seems. "A year ago what?" Megatron asks sternly. He glances at the datapad and then back to the waste bot that made the squeak ... and watches it slink almost under a table. That's... weird. Why should it care it made noise like that? "Are you saying this was sent to me a year ago?" Megatron continues, "What type of courier do you call yourself?" Swivel freezes, her smile plastered on her face, but just a subtle shifting about her optics change the expression from chipper to fearful, despite the upturned corners of her lips. This expression remains for a moment or two until she finally speaks. "An ashamed one?" Nope. Nope. Nope. Swivel mentally chides herself. Bad answer, trying to be cute. That's what gets people to yell and throw things at her. "I-I mean, er... I dinna say 'a year 'go' I said 'ERE YOU GO! Yanno, whocha say 'en passin' somertin' t'summin." This is perhaps a very feeble attempt to correct herself, and Swivel is wishing she could join the cleaning unit and slink away. But that would be unprofessional. ST: "I did not say 'a year ago' I said 'ERE YOU GO!' You know, what you say when passing something to someone." Nearby, the few waste bots by the mugs keep to themselves as they do their work. Though, the slinking YX-939 does seem to notice what's going on nearby and, very briefly, looks at Swivel with empathy. Very briefly; he's back being a good little disposable mech and adding to the pile of mugs. Said pile of mugs is more an artistic one than just one set at random; looks like the little bots are putting them one atop the other in a little criss-cross pattern. It's kind of cute. Megatron just stares at her for a long moment. A long peircing stare, the expression on his face unreadable. He does notice the one wastebot look over at whats going on but he doesn't react to it. After another moment he looks at the datapad and activates it. He is clueless what is on this and who it could be from. The way things are getting with the rebellion and the senate he's ready for anything at this point. Megatron reads the data as it scrolls by and his optics brighten a bit. The look of surprise settles into a pleased look and then it vanishes to a neutral expression, "Who gave this to you?" he asks and notices that same wastebot not quite acting as 'AI' as the rest. He knows none of them are just AI's but most don't break conformity like this one seems to be doing. Swivel boldly maintains her smile despite the piercing stare, but an astute observer could be able to detect she is highly anxious. A less astute observer would likely just see a femme standing there, grinning like a fool. She does not turn to leave, but waits patiently for instruction. Or to be shot, as any good messenger can expect to happen once in a while. When a question and not a blast comes she fidgets a bit. "Dinna say. Lotter folk'd rath'be anon." She nods slowly to emphasize this absolute and well known truth. After all, if she makes it seem like an absolute and well known truth, maybe she won't be in trouble. ST: "Did not say. Lots of folk would rather be anonymous." The behavior is really very brief; just after a second or two, that one bot is back to cleaning with the rest of them. YX-939 even unslinks himself from the table as the mortification wears off! Look at that, the disposables even have a little system going on. They're already on a second decorative mug tower. It's not clear if they even realize they're making it decorative or if they just took the most clean yet space-saving option available. Megatron looks at the femme, "Well who handed it to you? Can you tell me that?" Swivel stares at Megatron, quickly glances away as it dawns on her that staring is rude, but then remembers looking away shows weakness and settles for looking at Megatron's chin instead. "Er..." she seems hesitant. "I's told I dunna need t'know nuttin' by summer, uh, mech an' 'e looked real mean. Th'one th'anded me ther pad..." Swivel lowers her chin slightly. "I wa'jus' in Nyon, ju'funished a drop-off, 'en a mech standin' nearby calls m'over, an' talks t'me fer a bit 'en tells me if I dun del'ver th'message, 'e'd know, an' tha' I wunna like ther cons'kences." Swivel raises her hands, palms out, in in a placating manner. "All said was 'e was a 'friend o' ther 'cons..." ST: "I was told that I did not need to know nothing by some, uh, mech, and he looked really mean. The one that handed me the pad." "I was just in Nyon, just finished a drop-off, and a mech standing nearby calls me over and talks to me for a bit then tells me if I do not deliver this message, he would know, and that I would not like the consequences." "All he said was that he was a friend of the Decepticons." Megatron re-reads the information on the datapad and looks back at Swivel, "where did this 'mean mech' go after he gave this to you?" "Wellum. I left 'fore 'e did," Swivel responds. She shifts weight from one leg to the other. "I's told t'jus give an'sponse I get t'summon else... I know ther mech, I does works fer 'im time t'time." ST: "Well. I left before he did. I was told to just give any response to someone else. I know the mech. I do work for him from time to time." Well, at least the disposables know how to entertain themselves when things get quiet. There is literally no more mugs to clean; after a few seconds, the three that decided to task themselves with this in the first place start to play a very quiet rendition of Jenga. Piles of folded triangle papers are in the corner. The papers appear to be little note pads with some sort of company logo on it. Stacked up; the occasional tumble makes nearly no sound. Megatron frowns, "Any responce from me you were to give to someone else? Who?" he wonders why it's not as noisy suddenly and glances over to see the disposables playing Jenga, really? Swivel nods her head eagerly. "Yeah. Steamcore. Does a lotter... uh..." she thinks a moment, her arms gesturing madly as she tries to locate the right words to further explain, "...cor'natin' 'tween couriers 'n such." She shrugs her shoulders after that. She then leans somewhat more closely to Megatron, speaking a bit more quietly. "M'thinks ther mean mech wunna th'one 'o made th'message, but summon 'oo canna b'known ter, ah.... yanno... be sendin' things ter, yanno... you... here... yanno..." ST: "Yes. Steamcore. Does a lot of, uh..." "coordinating between couriers and such." "I think the mean mech was not the one who made the message, but the message is from someone who can not be known to, you know, be sending things to, you know, you, here, you know." Megatron watches her as she leans closer to him. He doesn't move, doesn't flinch but just stares at her while the proverbial cricketbots chirp in the background as she speaks. After a moment he says, "Where can I find this Steamcore and what makes you think the 'mean mech' was in fact just a courier himself for who is truly behind this message?" Too bad no one is watching the three waste disposal bots in the corner; they are having one FANTASIC game of paper-Jenga. Swivel stands up straight, looking a little bit sheepish. She hazards a glance at what the cleaners are doing. That looks fun. Ah. But she has to keep on her job, and part of it is dealing with the people she makes deliveries to... no matter who it is. "Wellum... jus'... a... hunch.... Bein' courier, yanno 'ow thin's are...." ST: "Well. It is just a hunch. Being a courier, you know how things are." There's a clatter of noise from the pit proper; the three cleaning bots stop their game long enough to look over the railing. It seems that a couple of the other disposables had either been bumped in to or simply tossed right in to get torn apart. None of the surviving cleaning bots seem particularly phased. Though, they seem to know better than to go chasing in to clean after the corpses. The three cleaning bots by the bar just kind of... blink at the carnage in mute bemusement. Megatron notices some disposables get trashed and focuses back on Swivel, "Very well then. I asked before, where can I find Steamcore?" Swivel jumps a little at the collateral damage. Hopefully she doesn't also become collateral. "Nyon. B'hind a bar there..." Swivel begins to explain the location and name of the establishment. She glances back at the cleaners who seem to have paused. "Uh..... they... uh...." she rubs the back of her helmet. "Kinner seem... unse'led. Ain't they jus' tools? Tools're not... feelin' sorts, are they?" ST: "Nyon. Behind a bar there." "Uh, they kind of seem... unsettled. Are they not just tools? Tools are not thefeeling sorts, are they?" The pit is being given as wide a berth as the disposable scan give it while still cleaning around. Some energon splashes -- both from fighters and the couple of poor cleaning bots that got tossed in -- outside the pit are mopped up seemingly without much concern. The three by the bar appear to be setting up a new round of paper Jenga. Megatron looks at the disposables and back at Swivel, "That is up for debate but in my experience they are as feeling and aware as you and I." "Y'dun say?" Swivel exclaims. Without seeking dismissal she walks over to the cleaners that seem to be playing a game. "Hullo! Kin ya talk?" She waves her hands at them to get their attention as she speaks. She seems at this point to suddenly disgregard Megatron. ST: "You don't say?" "Hello. Can you talk?" All three of the disposables jump as if they had been physically prodded. The looks they give Swivel are pretty much identical stunned shock tinged with just a little bit of fear. After a few seconds of not being struck or attacked they seem to calm down a little. Though, now they just look confused. They stare. Waiting for orders, maybe? Megatron watches the courier walk away. The femme doesn't work for him persay so he doesn;t seem that concerned that she just walked away without asking permission to. He does watch her try to speak to the disposables and their unsure reaction. :Here you can speak and not be afraid, drones. Here there are no castes. Go ahead and speak with her if that's what you want to do." The three cleaning bots all give Megatron identical stares for a moment. Then, very very quietly, as the three of them glance back and forth between Megatron and Swivel -- one of them seems to be looking around for an escape route -- one of them mumbles: "We're not drones..." Swivel raises her optics in some surprise, and then smiles brightly. "Na'drones? Okay. D'ya got names?" Swivel asks, seeming as thrilled as a little girl whose pet just started talking. All fear of her current location seems to have drained out of her. ST: "Not drones? Okay. Do you have names?" Megatron take a drink from his mug of energon and just watches. The three cleaning bots -- the only differences are their paint jobs, really -- seem a little.. Wary. The mumbler shifts in place. "I'm YX-939, that's YX-452 and... YX-27." YX-27 appears to be slightly inebriated. Swivel may or may not realize that she's been followed. After all, didn't Blurr give her a hint back there? A few solar cycles ago, she'd spoken to him, and revealed that she was a courier like himself. Which might have been a mistake. She'd asked him not to follow her, and he pointed out that she couldn't stop him from doing so if he really wanted to. And so, the Autobot had spotted her passing by and decided to tail her again. Which probably wasn't the best idea, given the terrible shape he was in. Especially since she came -here-. But hey, he's Blurr, he's got this. Right? He did dodge security thus far so he must be fine. Quietly clinging to a series of pipelines in the ceiling above the three disposable class cleaners, he watches the scene below. Hopefully Soundwave doesn't show up any time soon... "Eeeeey? Droll! N'even proper names!" Swivel exclaims. She thinks for a moment. "I tho' I'd it bad. 'Leas I gots a name...." Swivel sighs and speaks even more quietly, murmuring about how most people don't even bother using her name. "Sooo uh.... YX-939 w'it? Th'game y'was playin' looked kinner fun. Kin I--" Swivel suddenly aborts her sentence and looks around. She then looks back at Megatron and straightens up. "Er... uh... I forgotter ask... 'zat all?" ST: "Droll! Not even proper names!" "I thought I had it bad. At least I have a name." "So, uh, YX-939 was it? That game you were playing looked kind of fun. Can I--" "I forgot to ask... is that all?" YX-939 exchanges brief looks with the two other cleaning bots on either side. YX-452 gives a shrug of absolute confusion. YX-27 just blinks with optics a little too bright. Looks like the three are still wary of Swivel, though they're not running away, so that's something, right? Megatron nods without taking his optics off the scene unfolding before him. "Yes that is all." he sets his mug down and then frowns. Something doesnt seem 'right'. The large miner mech looks around but everything seems fine. After a moment he looks back at the cleaning bots and the courier and continues to watch. Swivel inclines her head, relief washing over her. The femme is hardly a closed book. She turns merrily back to the cleaners, who seem to be a current fascination of hers. "Pity I 'un h'any ya 'round 'en a mech got shot 'en fell 'o me. S'was messy, lemme tell ya!" She inches even closer. "Dun b'wary o' me..... I unnerstand. I do. 'Coz I kin get real worried 'en dealin' wit peeps in 'ther uppers! W'if I say ther wrong thing? Or look at 'em wrong? I dun wan trouble... but y'kin talk ter me coz I know. Hmmmm.... but if ya dun wanner, I 'stand." ST: "Pity I did not have any of you around when a mech got shot and fell on me. Sure was messy, let me tell you." "Do not be wary of me. I understand. I do. Because I can get realy worried when dealing with people of the upper caste. What if I say the wrong thing? Or Look at them wrong? I do not want trouble.... but you can talk to me because I know. Hmmmm... but if you do not want to, I understand." The three disposables just stare at Swivel for a few seconds. Slowly, YX-27 says, "I have no idea what you're saying." He's slurring only a little. YX-452 gives him a slight smack to his arm. YX-939 ignores them both. "Uhm, I... That's... Nice of you?" He doesn't seem to know what to say, either. Swivel thinks for just a moment and then leans in really close, speaking in a hushed tone, intending only to be heard by the three. "Yeah, sorry, I know I can be kinda hard to understand. It's just a thing I learned ta do in hopes people won't ask me too many questions because they can't understand me." She stands up straight and gives the disposables their space again. "Wellum. I'm gunner start sayin' 'lo to ther cleaners from now'n. Give a bit 'o cheer!" She glances about herself, just as a habit. ST: "Wellum. I am going to start saying hellow to the cleaners from now on. Give a bit of cheer!" Blurr is crammed up between the pipes and the ceiling, it's awfully uncomfortable, and in fact painful given he's already injured. ...A few drops of fuel fall from the ceiling, landing on the floor in front of the YX-939. Drip, drip. Odd place for body fluids to be coming from, right? Drip. Drip. The drops go by right in front of XY-939's vision. Quickly, he looks to the sudden, new puddle growing on the floor. He gasps. The gasp draws looks from the other two. "A LEAK." Is an excited whispered hush from a still slurring XY-27. "A pipe is leaking!" XY-452 looks upwards. "Finally, something we know how to fi --." A pause. "...That is a very high ceiling." Having been right close to the cleaners, Swivel also notices the dripping. She doesn't pay it much mind, until it seems to get an odd response from the sweepers. This causes the femme to look upwards as well. "Yeah, kinner is I s'pose." Swivel responds. She then swipes a finger across the small puddle, and then examines the residue on her finger. "Wha kinner pipe'd leak this?" Then a better question pops up. "Wha'zit?" And before anyone can answer, she sticks her finger in her mouth for her own little test. It's a wonder the femme is still alive, really. ST: "Yes, it kind of is I suppose." "What kind of pipe would leak this?" "What is it?" YX-939 stares at Swivel as she sticks some of the dripped fluid in her mouth. "...Pipes often cary waste, you know." YX-452 seems to be trying to climb the wall now. YX-27 is just watching him go, but doesn't look as if he's going to try the same move himself. Megatron notices the drone get worked up over something on the floor and then look up. Then he notices what Swivel does. You generally don't go sticking strange fluids in your mouth to see what they are. If this is her normal bahavior the miner has to wonder how she's still alive. He follows his gaze upward toward the ceiling where everyone else is looking. Thers something up there that isn't right but he doesn't give any indication he's on to something. Instead he sits back and takes a sip more of his energon. Mentally he thinks about Soundwave coming down here and continues to watch the drones with the courier. Swivel stares at YX-939 for a moment, and then quickly takes her finger out of her mouth. "Waste?" She repeats. She looks aat the puddle and then up at the pipes, then at the puddle, then at her finger. "I think.... mebbe I needa drink...." Perhaps she was hoping the pipes were a beverage delivery pipe. Swivel really is ignorant in things that don't pertain to her job. She sticks her finger out to YX-939 "D'me a favour?" ST: "I think... maybe I need a drink." "Do me a favour?" YX-939 is still giving Swivel an uneasy stare, though he looks at the finger. "..I'm not sure what you want me to do." YX-452 is actually scaling the wall now. He's grabbing on to random wall pieces and getting up there. YX-27 is looking at 452 as if he were absolutely insane. Nope. He's not following. Swivel says, "Yer job! Clean it! I dun want waste on me finger! Er, I mean, please? 'Coz pleases 'er nice e'en it's yer job." ST: "Your job! Clean it! I do not want waste on my finger. Er, I mean, please? Because pleases are nice even when it is your job." YX-939 blinks at Swivel. A little nozzel pokes out of one of his own fingers. Spray spray spritz. Lemony fresh. He then gently scrubs the finger with a clensing cloth. Another spray. Swivel smiles at being cleaned. Sure it was just her finger, but it's nice to be pampered. It dawns on Swivel that she isn't the lowest rung of society after all, and there is one beneath her. She reaches over with her other hand and pats YX-939. "Thanks! Good job!" YX-939 looks vaugely uncomfortable with the pat. In fact, he looks a little nervous. YX-452 is almost to the top of the ceiling. He starts reaching for the pipes up top...! Blurr curses inwardly, and attempts to remain as still as possible, hoping the disposable class won't notice him. But almost as soon as YX has cleaned up the first puddle, another one appears. Drip, drip drip. Swivel hears a small pip pip pip and looks over to where more drips have joined their company. She then looks at YX-452. Then looks at 939 and 27. "Will 'e be a'right on 'is own up there?" Swivel walks over to where YX-452 began his ascent, standing beneath him and staring up, holding out her arms as if preparing to try and catch the disposable should he fall, despite not being really a very large or very strong femme. She's seen enough disposables just get trashed rather than repaired, and the realisation that could happen to one she actually 'met' seemed.... horrible some how. ST: "Will he be alright on his own up there?" YX-939 gives a small shrug. "Maybe? Hopeflly?" He does look a little worried, though. YX-452 is... Grabbing at pipes. And crawling in to the pipes. Maybe he's inspecting them? He doesn't seem to have found Blurr yet. YX-27 is just looking upwards. "He isn't screaming, so that's something." Still slurring, that one is. Just then, the red and white seeker barrel rolls mid air into the forge. Dramatic entrance as usual. He lands with ease right under the steady drip of energon coming from the ceiling. He opens his mouth to say something, but just then the blood drips onto his wing. He scowls, looking disgusted as he peers at the energon. "What the..." He looks up at the ceiling, crimson optics narrowing, gaze unconsciously resting right on Blurr. They're being spied on, Starscream is certain of it, but how is it that Megatron seems to be unaware? He must have been blind, the fool. Well, the seeker could care less. As long as the information divulged doesn't affect him. He smirks a tiny bit and steps back. "How goes it with our mighty leader?" Megatron need only think of Soundwave appearing and... he does! The outlier appears (once again in that subtle, almost creepy sort of way where he is just suddenly *there* and you're left wondering if he just arrived or if he's been there awhile. The mech takes in this scene quietly, but keeps his focus on Megatron as he strides up to the great gray miner. Starscream seems to have gotten the same idea, somehow, and Soundwave stops to look almost reproachfully at the Seeker. Blurr is increasingly aware of the d-class approaching his position. 452 hasn't gotten to him yet, but it won't be long before he does. The courier reaches for his weapon, finger on the trigger as he listens for the cleaner's movements through the piplines. If he gets too close... Megatron watches the Seekers entrance and cycles some air in what sounds like a huff, "It was going fine till your landing." he glances at Soundwave and back at Starscream and he slowly stands, "Starscream block the entrance." he gives Soundwave a nod and walks over to the puddle growing on the floor. YX-939and YX-27 are both looking up at the pipes and YX-452's hidden frame. There's no sound, or at least not enough to be heard above the din from the rest of the room. YX-452 stops every few seconds. He's inspecting every single pipe he comes across. Very dutiful. He's also stopping to clean every single smudge and bit of grime; the area Blurr is hidden in starts to smell pretty darn nice. Eventually, though, 452 starts to get a little too close to Blurr's legs. In fact, a blue bit is mistakened for a smudge. Spritz. Neither Soundwave nor Starscream are really any of her business, so Swivel had remained transfixed on the ceiling pipes in case 452 fell. However, when she hears the order for someone to block the exits, Swivel suddenly finds that nervousness from when she first entered the Forge crawling back and taking hold of her core. She remains staring up, but a subtle shift in her stance would que to the observant that she would be ready to bolt at a moment's notice. Starscream sighs, and flies lazily over to the entrance, taking his sweet time. He lands, his expression akin to annoyance, folding his arms. He glances over at Soundwave, his smirk widening a little. Soundwave follows Megatron and looks up in the same direction as everyone else. His telepathic abilities are already picking up a number of people's confusion- including YX-939's. Starscream's smirk is met with... total blankness. Soundwave's good at not conveying expression at all. though there /might/ be the slightest flicker of annoyance behind that red visor. He turns to Megatron. "You wished to see me?" Well if Soundwave is scanning he will definitely detect a presence in the room other than the ones that are immediately obvious. Someone is -definitely- watching them. And, unfortunately for poor little 452, Blurr gets jumpy when he ventures too close. A quick, deft movement and a silenced shot at the cleaner and the eavesdropper starts to scramble away as quickly as he can, moving toward the upper viewing areas for the arena! YX-939 squints at the ceiling. "I think... I see something?" It's something, all right; YX-452 seems to have fallen out of the pipework! Swivel had been watching the ceiling carefully, and when it appears that the other mech may be falling, she scrambles to try and catch the disposable. "I believe we have a 'visitor'." Megatron says quietly, "Who, is the question." He brings his arm cannon online and suddenly the drone falls still. He steps foward and looks up. There, something, something blue but it was moving too fast to be sure. "Track him." he orders to Soundwave and he himself tries to pinpoint where whoever was there has gone. YX-452 is, indeed, caught by poor scrambling Swivel. Except... He seems to be quite dead. Shot through the head, it looks like. YX-939 and YX-27 both gasp before solemnly bowing their heads for a few seconds. Then, they look back up as if nothing at all was wrong. Swivel stares down at the lifeless shell she caught. She nearly buckled under the impact, but struggled to stay on her feet. Knees slightly bent and legs apart, she gently sets it down, looking at the bullet wound. She then looks at what has leaked all over her forearms. However, she does not seem overly shocked or dismayed, just a little saddened. She then looks up again, scanning the area, seeking out escapes, hiding places, and good cover. Starscream follows Megatron's gaze to blue, fast something in ceiling. He laughs a little. He knows a fast blue someone. He suddenly transforms and zooms down an adjoining hallway. Once of out of Megatron's sight, he subspaces all his weaponry and retracts his null rays back into his arms. "Blurr~" he calls out in a sing song tone of voice. "" He waltzes through the air playfully, "?" YX-939and YX-27 both grab hold of both arms of their murdered friend and half drag, half carry the corpse to a corner. There, they... seem to be cleaning him. Scrubbing, spraying of nice-smelling fluids, and even the wound is wiped as clean as it could be. After a few minutes, poor 452 is cleaner than when he came in. There, they... Leave him. They go back to the railing by the wall. Both of them look to Swivel, quiet. Soundwave defintely does detect another presence up there. He nods to Megatron and quietly responds, "We do. Someone who does not belong. Someone... familiar." In fact, Soundwave recognizes that mental pattern as one he has encountered twice before. "The Autobot Blurr." His mind reaches towards the racer, picking up some things the other mech might not even admit to himself. "He is in poor shape. His mental focus is... drifting in and out." Megatron glances at the courier and his cannon twtiches, then he glances at the datapad on the table she delivered to him. "Convenient that you come here and now Blurr is here." his optics peirce a cold stare through her it seems as he sas into his comm. <<"Starscream, report.">> Swivel watches the disposables cleaning their coworker with a ponderous look upon her face. When they look to her, she frowns, her optics brimming with sympathy. Not long ago, she did not even realise they had feelings, and now she was feeling them quite acutely. And then, she is back in Megatron's attention. She turns to face him, but keeps her head low, her optics staring up almost apologetically. Her body language is everything it can be to portray a pathetic femme. However, she isn't sure of what to say, and so she says nothing. After all, he was making a statement, not a demand, instruction, or posing a question. Yep, Blurr is here because Swivel is here. Because she told him she was a courier, and so here he is following her. And now he knows she does jobs for Megatron. The Autobot clambers onto a mezzanine above the arena, ducking behind the seating up there. And then Starscream starts taunting him. If this had been a better day for him, he might have fallen for it, but not this time. Instead, he stays as hidden as possible, frantically searching for an escape route. The rest of the disposable cleaning bots around the Forge appear to realize that something isn't quite right. They begin to move closer to the walls, perhaps trying to remain as ignorable as possible, or perhaps as a form of defense. The only two that aren't doing the same thing are 939 and 27, who keep where they are by the railing next to their dead friend. They seem a little lost. "" The seeker says, still dancing about in the air. "" He ascends, hovering. "" Starscream says, his tone silken. << Oh, you are? Then distract your 'friends' so I can get out of here. >> Blurr replies. He peers down through the railing at Megatron, Soundwave, and Swivel... and that datapad she gave Megatron. Hmm... is it worth a shot? Soundwave picks up the sorrow of YX-939and YX-27. It comes through as a smattering of green and blue, like acid rain drizzling and seeping down. The outlier also picks up Megatron's suspicion of Swivel. For now, he addresses the issue of Swivel. "Megatron- she did not know. Her intentions are pure." Pause. "At least as far as that is concerned." Then he senses Blurr again and swings an arm up in warning towards Megatron. "Caution... Blurr is on the move up there." Megatron follows Soundwaves arm up toward the ceiling and lifts his arm cannon in that direction. "I will make this simple, Blurr, come down now in one peice or in peices -- the choice is yours." he opens his comm and silently radios Blurrs location to Starscream. The seeker rises up a little. "" "" Starscream's null rays mobilize and fire a carefully aimed shot at Blurr, but he's angled it perfectly so that if he misses, the ricochet will bounce off the metal backing of the walls behind Blurr to perhaps graze Soundwave and strike Megatron in the shoulder. At the first sign of a firefight, Swivel dives behind the small bar counter in the alcove of the Forge. Well, so much for remaining invisible; once shots start going off, a majority of the disposable cleaning bots just panic. Against the wall? Now they're underneath tables, chairs, and if there are vents just large enough, some are hiding in there, too. YX-939 and YX-27 are no different; under the bar counter they go! Blurr does dodge, though Starscream didn't make it all that hard. Quickly, while Soundwave and Megatron are distracted by the stray shots, he leaps down from the mezzanine and makes a grab for the datapad Swivel had brought which is presumably still sitting on the table in front of them. He's exhausted from energon loss and definitely not at his best but thanks to Mercury's little 'gift' to him a few stellar cycles ago, he's at least better than before. Soundwave senses some... treachery from Starscream, looking up with concern- just in time to dodge that shot. It was subtle.... not a direct attack, but there's another of a ...slimy mental trail than Soundwave realizes he will have to watch that Seeker very, very closely. Though for now, until he learns and understands further, he keeps silent, simply getting out of the way. He reaches for the button on his chest. "Laserbeak: Eject! Operation: Spy removal...." He points up towards Blurr and Laserbeak starts flying upwards..... Megatron sees Starscreams shot conveniently go wild and he dodges out of the way. Then he catchs a blue blur out of the corner of his optics heading for the table. The datapad! "Stop him!" he says and fires toward the table. Swivel stares at 939 and 27, realising it is getting a little crowded in her current cover spot. However, she does not say as much. She squirms a little, turning herself about without exposing herself so that she can peer from her cover and see what is happening. "Oh slag," Starscream says with less enthusiasm than perhaps Megatron or Soundwave would have liked hear from the seeker. "He's just too fast, the slagger." He then turns, dipping lower to the ground and aiming for Blurr, but at the last nano-klik shifts his crosshairs over and shoots the data pad instead. "Oh, my bad." He sighs dramatically. "Guess today's just /not/ my day." YX-939 and YX-27 both look at Swivel in surprise as they all end up in the same hiding spot. It takes a few seconds for either of them to say anything, but it's 939 that does. "I like you. Please try not to die." Blurr attempts to grab the datapad, but Megatron's blast strikes the table, shattering it and everything on it. And even if, for some reason, it survived that, Starscream went ahead and -ensured- its destruction by shooting it specifically. Yep, it's gone. Slag it. Hopefully no one had uploaded any of the intel on it yet. Debris flies up and grazes the Autobot in the side, leaving some scratches but nothing major. Suddenly, that hiding spot behind the bar counter becomes even -more- crowded as Blurr also joins them. ...Which might not have been the best thing, really, considering two of the friends of someone he's just killed are also there. YX-939 and YX-27 are first both jump in surprise. Then, 939 brings up his arm; a nozzle pops out of his wrist. SPRITZ. Yuuup, that's cleaning solution. It MIGHT sting. It's also lemony fresh! Megatron is beyond livid with Starscream right now but will deal with that later. He follows Blurr's dive behind the bar and puts the end of his cannon just shy of touching the side of Blurrs face, "Looks like there will be a surprise extra fight in the arena tonight and you will be the guest of honor, Blurr." his tone is cold as ice and his stare just as intense. Soundwave would make a >:I face at Starscream about now if this were some sort of text-based game, but it's not, right? Nonetheless, he's not feeling particularly enamored of the Seeker at the moment. Laserbeak, meanwhile, is still flying after Blurr... which means that now he's flying right towards the bar counter. Swooping overhead, he keeps an optic on the scene below, lasers locked on Blurr but with Megatron right there the condor's not risking a shot. "Nnnnnng," is Swivel's response. She was about to say something endearing, or so she thought, to YX-939, but then their place became even more crowded. It was awkward to try and turn while trying to remain out of the fight, but Blurr brought it to them. Swivel is not feeling very clement towards Blurr at this moment, and if in her attempt to rearrangeherself he so HAPPENS to get kicked, elbowed, or kneed, well... Ouch, that cleaning solution does sting just a little, though it isn't much compared to the pain Blurr is already in. He is about to lash out in self-defense, but then Megatron has a cannon in his face. "Sorry, you know I'd love to have the honor," In a flash of motion a gun arm swings up. "But I can't break the law." That is unless the 'lawmakers' say he can. He fires a blast at a loosened piece of piping above, likely from the shot he'd fired earlier at poor little 452, attempting to knock it down onto Megatron's back. Swivel really could use a drink by the end of this. "Agh!" The seeker cries in feigned irritation as the dust and debris flies up. "Ugh.." He 'accidentally' flies a bit crooked and slams into Laserbeak. "Ooh..remind me not to have more than one glass of Nightmare Fuel at a time... didn't feel like anything at first, but slag, when it kicks it it suuuuuure is a knock in the aft!" He fakes a belch out of his ventilators. Then, when he sees Megatron pressing his cannon against Blurr's helm, he flies towards the Decepticon leader then protoforms, barreling into him in an attempt to shove him aside. "No! /I/ want to kill him, stupid! Slagger tried to stab me in the back with a memory erasure tool, do you think I'm just going stand here and to let you take away the glory of sweet, sweet revenge?" "" The seeker sends Blurr the location of the exit nearest to him. "" Megatron side steps the shot from the Autobot but then gets shoved out of the way by Starscream. "You fool!" Swivel is rather relieved Megatron did not get a chance to fire his weapon, as she and the disposables may have been in the margin of acceptable collateral. She whispers to the other two disposables. "We need to find some better cover..." Blurr is aggravated by Starscream's insults, but he isn't exactly in any shape to protest. He takes the coordinates and makes a beeline for the exit, leaving the Forge in his supersonic dust. "...or not." Swivel mutters as one moment Blurr is there, and the next he's not. Maybe now the shooting will stop? YX-939 and YX-27 look to Swivel only for Blurr to suddenly run off. Both just sit where they are in shock. Then, again, they look to Swivel. "That could have been worse." Says YX-939. "Laserbeak!" Soundwave's emotionless facade falters as the condor goes crashing into a nearby table, and the outlier rushes over to check on his status. As a result, he doesn't have time to attempt any responses to Blurr- even if he could match Blurr's speed. However, he does notice all of Starscream's odd behaviors. Hmmm. He may need to speak with the Seeker later... or perhaps he should just /watch/ him for awhile. Yes, that might be a good idea. "Awwww!" Starscream croons as Soundwave rushes over to check up on Laserbeak's status. "Poor little... birdie..." He flies over the communication officer, and Soundwave will definitely get a whiff of the Nightmare Fuel he drank earlier. But was it enough to cloud his judgement? Certainly smells like it, and he's totally acting like it, but who knows with Starscream, perhaps it was, perhaps it wasn't... The seeker then laughs and flies lazily out of the forge, one of his wingtips clipping the doorframe on his way out. "Whoopssss." But did he do that on purpose... Swivel looks at the two disposables as they look at her. "Um... y'lost oner ya... but I s'pose coulda been worse..." She slowly moves out from such close quarters and glances about. "Wellum....." Swivel frowns and wonders if she should try and not bring too much attention to herself and just quietly leave the Forge and hope she doesn't have any jobs that bring her here again. ST: "Um... you lost one of you... but I suppose it could have been worse." "Well...."